Multi-bin stowage method, stowage system and related devices

Abstract

The application provides a multi-bin tallying method, a tallying system and related devices, selects even-numbered target bins of a specific bin type from multiple bins, the number of bin occupancies in the target bins is consistent with the number of bin idle quantities; creates a blank tallying list according to the target bins, the blank tallying list includes at least one to-be-matched tallying sub-order; determines a mapping relationship between a picking bin and a storage bin according to the actual situation of the target bins reaching the picking position and the storage position, perfects the to-be-matched tallying sub-order based on the mapping relationship, obtains a tallying sub-order, realizes intelligent splitting and dynamic allocation of a tallying task, and solves the problem that a traditional tallying method cannot meet the dynamic and efficient tallying demand under various conveying line scenes, so that the workstations can efficiently transfer the goods in the picking bin to the storage bin according to the tallying list.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of logistics and warehousing technology, and in particular to a multi-compartment sorting method, sorting system and related apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] In modern warehousing and logistics systems, sorting operations refer to the process of transferring goods from one storage location to another. Traditional sorting models typically employ a "one-step sorting" method, where the specific compartment information for the source and destination boxes is clearly specified when the sorting order is created. However, in various conveyor line scenarios where the arrival order of transported goods is uncertain (such as large loop lines, U-shaped lines, etc.), fixed correspondences are prone to errors due to discrepancies between the actual and expected arrival order of the boxes, failing to meet the demands for efficient sorting and lacking dynamic adaptability. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a multi-compartment sorting method, sorting system and related devices, which dynamically matches the mapping relationship between the picking compartment and the storage compartment based on the actual arrival of the material box and the occupancy status of the compartment, realizes the intelligent splitting and dynamic allocation of sorting tasks, and improves the sorting efficiency and accuracy in various conveyor line scenarios.

[0004] Firstly, this application provides a multi-compartment sorting method, the method comprising: selecting the compartment type of a bin to be sorted; selecting at least two target bins according to the compartment type, wherein the number of occupied compartments and the number of idle compartments in each target bin are the same, and the number of bins in each target bin is even; creating a sorting order based on the at least two target bins, the sorting order including at least one sorting sub-order to be matched, the sorting sub-order to be matched including a mapping relationship between the picking compartment of the picking bin and the storage compartment of the storage bin; the picking bin being the target bin that has arrived at the picking position, and the storage bin being the target bin... The bin is the target bin that has arrived at the storage location; the picking slot is a slot that is occupied, and the storage slot is a slot that is idle. Each slot has a unique identifier. Based on the target bins that have arrived at the storage location and the picking location, the identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot is obtained. Based on the identification information, the matching sub-order is completed to obtain the sub-order, so that the workstation can perform a sorting operation based on the sub-order. The sorting operation refers to transferring the goods in the picking slot to the storage slot according to the sub-order.

[0005] In some embodiments, the quantity of the sub-orders to be matched is determined based on the compartment type and the number of boxes of the target bin.

[0006] In some embodiments, the step of improving the matching sub-order based on the identification information to obtain the sub-order includes: establishing a mapping relationship between at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot; filling the identification information of the picking slot and the storage slot with the mapping relationship into the same matching sub-order to obtain the sub-order.

[0007] In some embodiments, establishing a mapping relationship between at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot includes: obtaining first identification information of at least one picking slot, and obtaining second identification information of at least one storage slot; sorting the first identification information to obtain a first sequence, and sorting the second identification information to obtain a second sequence; and establishing a mapping relationship between slots corresponding to the identification information in the first sequence and the second sequence that are in the same order.

[0008] In some embodiments, the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using the same method, or the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using different methods, the sorting methods including ascending order and descending order.

[0009] In some embodiments, after obtaining the sorting sub-order, the method further includes: displaying an operation page, the operation page including the sorting sub-order and operation controls, the operation controls including a confirmation control; receiving a trigger operation on the confirmation control, updating the progress status of the current sorting sub-order to a completed status, and updating the progress status of the sorting order to a partially completed status; detecting that at least one sorting sub-order has a completed progress status, and updating the progress status of the sorting order to a sorting completed status.

[0010] In some embodiments, after obtaining identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot based on the target bins arriving at the storage location and the picking location, the method further includes: displaying the identification information of the picking slot and product information within the picking slot, the product information including at least one of product barcode, name, country of origin, quantity, and specifications; and displaying the identification information of the storage slot and the capacity of the storage slot.

[0011] As can be seen, in this embodiment, firstly, the grid type of the bin to be sorted is selected, and at least two target bins are selected according to the grid type. The number of occupied grids and the number of idle grids in each target bin are the same, and the number of target bins is even. A sorting order is created based on at least two target bins. The sorting order includes at least one sorting sub-order to be matched. The sorting sub-order to be matched includes the mapping relationship between the picking grid of the picking bin and the storage grid of the storage bin. The picking bin is the target bin that has arrived at the picking position, and the storage bin is the target bin. The bin is the target bin arriving at the storage location; the picking slot is the slot in an occupied state, and the storage slot is the slot in an idle state. Each slot has a unique identifier. Based on the target bins arriving at the storage and picking locations, the identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot is obtained. Based on the identification information, the matching sub-orders are completed to obtain the sorting sub-orders, enabling the workstation to perform sorting operations according to the sorting sub-orders. The sorting operation refers to transferring goods from the picking slot to the storage slot according to the sorting sub-order. Therefore, this application dynamically matches the mapping relationship between the picking slot and the storage slot based on the actual arrival of the bins and the occupancy status of the slots, realizing intelligent splitting and dynamic allocation of sorting tasks, and improving the sorting efficiency and accuracy in various conveyor line scenarios. Attached Figure Description

[0012] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0013] Figure 1 A structural block diagram of a cargo handling system provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a conveyor system provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of a central control unit provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 4 A flowchart illustrating a multi-compartment sorting method provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 5 This is a functional unit structure block diagram of a multi-compartment sorting device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0014] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present application, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0015] The terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish different objects, not to describe a specific order. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but in some embodiments includes steps or units not listed, or in some embodiments includes other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, products, or apparatuses.

[0016] In this document, the term "embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of this application. The appearance of this phrase in various places throughout the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it a separate or alternative embodiment mutually exclusive with other embodiments. It will be explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

[0017] In the embodiments of this application, "and / or" describes the relationship between associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent the following three situations: A exists alone; A and B exist simultaneously; B exists alone. Among them, A and B can be singular or plural.

[0018] In this embodiment, the symbol " / " can indicate that the preceding and following objects are in an "or" relationship. Alternatively, the symbol " / " can also represent a division sign, i.e., performing a division operation. For example, A / B can mean A divided by B.

[0019] In the embodiments of this application, "at least one item" or its similar expression refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of a single item or a plurality of items. "One or more" means one or more, while "multiple" means two or more. For example, "at least one item" of a, b, or c can represent the following seven cases: a, b, c; a and b; a and c; b and c; a, b, and c. Each of a, b, and c can be an element or a set containing one or more elements.

[0020] In the embodiments of this application, "equal to" can be used with "greater than" and is applicable to technical solutions used when "greater than" is used; it can also be used with "less than" and is applicable to technical solutions used when "less than" is used. When "equal to" is used with "greater than", it is not used with "less than"; when "equal to" is used with "less than", it is not used with "greater than".

[0021] The traditional "one-step sorting" method, when used in various conveyor line scenarios where the arrival order of goods is uncertain (such as large loop lines and U-shaped lines), has a core limitation: it relies on the fixed grid correspondence when creating the sorting list as its core operational logic, lacking the ability to adapt to dynamic operating environments. This is specifically reflected in the following aspects: 1) Poor flexibility: All grid correspondences must be determined when creating the inventory list, making it unable to adapt to dynamically arriving bins; 2) Inefficient, it can only handle the sorting task of a single compartment at a time, and cannot make full use of the capacity of multi-compartment bins; 3) Waste of resources: When the occupancy of the material bin slots does not match the preset situation, it can easily cause the sorting task to fail or wait. 4) High error rate: Fixed correspondence is prone to errors due to discrepancies between the actual arrival order of the material bins and the expected order.

[0022] This application provides a multi-compartment sorting method, sorting system and related devices, which dynamically matches the mapping relationship between the picking compartment and the storage compartment based on the actual arrival of the material box and the occupancy status of the compartment, realizes the intelligent splitting and dynamic allocation of sorting tasks, and improves the sorting efficiency and accuracy in various conveyor line scenarios.

[0023] The technical solution of this application and how it solves the above-mentioned technical problems will be described in detail below with specific embodiments. These specific embodiments can be combined with each other, and the same or similar concepts or processes may not be described again in some embodiments. The embodiments of this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] Please see Figure 1 , Figure 1 A structural block diagram of a cargo handling system provided in an embodiment of this application is shown below. Figure 1 As shown, the sorting system, through multi-module collaboration, achieves automated and intelligent management of warehousing operations such as sorting, grid matching, and equipment control. Its module architecture and functions are as follows: The inventory management system consists of an equipment layer, an application layer, a user layer, and a central control layer. These modules form a closed loop through data and instruction flow, covering the entire process from equipment perception to system decision-making, application execution, and human-machine interaction. Specifically: The equipment layer includes automatic barcode readers and conveyor systems. Automatic barcode readers identify bin codes (such as QR codes and barcodes), collect bin information, and connect to the central control unit to upload the scanned data. The conveyor system physically moves the bins and serves as the hardware carrier for their movement within the warehouse, including storage and retrieval positions. It has a bidirectional interface with the conveyor control system, receiving control signals and reporting bin position data.

[0025] The application layer includes a goods handling management module, a grid matching engine, and a conveyor control system interface. The goods handling management module manages goods handling orders throughout their entire lifecycle, including order creation, task splitting, and status maintenance (e.g., updating the order status to "completed"). It interacts bidirectionally with the central control unit, receiving orders creation tasks and providing feedback on order status. The grid matching engine dynamically matches picking and storing grids according to preset matching rules, improving the flexibility of goods handling. It also interacts bidirectionally with the central control unit, receiving grid matching requests and providing matching results. The conveyor control system interface connects bidirectionally with the central control unit and the conveyor system, acting as an "instruction translator" and "status feedback channel." It converts central control unit instructions into control signals recognizable by the conveyor system and simultaneously reports bin location data.

[0026] The user layer includes the workstation operation interface, which displays grid-level tasks (such as picking out grid A and storing in grid B) to operators through a human-computer interaction window, as well as operation buttons (such as confirm / skip); it interacts bidirectionally with the central control unit to issue operation instructions and provide feedback on execution results.

[0027] The central layer, including the central control unit, is responsible for business logic processing (such as task distribution and data verification) and data storage, serving as the central brain of the sorting system. Specifically, the central control unit receives barcode scanning data from automatic barcode readers; distributes tasks to the sorting order management module and receives its sorting order status feedback; initiates grid matching requests to the grid matching engine and receives the matching results; issues control commands to the conveyor control system interface; pushes tasks to the workstation operation interface and receives operator instructions / feedback.

[0028] Based on the above system architecture, the sorting process of the sorting system is as follows: Step 1: The central control unit automatically selects or receives the type of material bin to be sorted; Step 2: The central control unit distributes the sorting task to the sorting order management module. The sorting task includes the type and quantity of the bins to be sorted. The sorting order management module generates a blank sorting order based on the sorting task. Step 3: The central control unit sends a control command to the conveyor control system interface. The conveyor control system interface converts the command into a signal that the conveyor system can recognize, driving the conveyor system to start and the hopper enters the conveyor line to begin moving. Step 4: The conveyor system, according to the instruction signal, accurately transports the material box to the preset storage and picking positions through the transmission and positioning devices. Step 5: After the material box is in place, the automatic barcode reader reads the barcode of the target material box in the storage position and the picking position and sends it back to the central control unit. Step 6: The central control unit sends a grid matching request to the grid matching engine; Step 7: After the grid matching engine returns the matching result, the central control unit pushes the task to the workstation operation interface, and the operator executes the sorting task through the workstation operation interface; at the same time, the central control unit feeds back the grid matching result to the sorting order management module, and the sorting order management module updates the sorting order status synchronously, completing the operation loop.

[0029] Please see Figure 2 , Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a conveyor system provided in an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 2 As shown, the conveyor system includes conveyor tracks, positioning devices (not shown), and sorting stations. The sorting stations include picking and storing stations. Boxes arriving at the picking station are called picking boxes, and boxes arriving at the storing station are called storing boxes. Picking boxes are those from which goods are removed, and storing boxes are those from which goods are placed. When a box arrives at either the picking or storing station, an automatic barcode reader identifies the box code and sends it to the central control unit. The central control unit then controls the grid matching engine to begin grid matching. Afterward, the operator performs the sorting task based on the grid matching result. The order of the picking and storing stations is not constrained and can be flexible. Figure 2 The pick-out position can be placed before the deposit position, or the pick-out position can be placed before the deposit position.

[0030] Please see Figure 3 , Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of a central control unit provided in this application embodiment is shown below. Figure 3 As shown, the central control unit includes a processor 101, a memory 103, a communication interface 102, and one or more computer programs 1031, which are stored in the memory 103 and configured to be executed by the processor 101. The programs include methods for performing a multi-compartment sorting method as described in the following embodiments.

[0031] Based on the above structure, an embodiment of a multi-compartment sorting method is proposed in this application.

[0032] Please see Figure 4 , Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating a multi-compartment sorting method provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 4 As shown, the method is applied to, for example Figure 1 or Figure 3 The central control unit shown, the method includes: Step S401: Select the compartment type of the bin to be sorted.

[0033] The material bins include multiple compartments, and can be categorized according to the number of compartments, such as 2-compartment, 4-compartment, and 6-compartment types. Users can pre-select the compartment type corresponding to the current sorting task, for example, by displaying multiple compartment types through a human-computer interaction window and determining the corresponding compartment type for the current sorting task based on the user's selection. Alternatively, the sorting system can automatically select the compartment type corresponding to the current sorting task.

[0034] The sorting system stores information for each bin, including but not limited to the bin's compartment type, compartment occupancy status, compartment identification information, and product information within the bin. Compartment occupancy status indicates whether each compartment is occupied or idle, and compartment identification information refers to the unique code for each compartment. When performing a sorting task, the central control unit retrieves the compartment type information and displays multiple compartment types through the human-machine interface to allow the operator to determine the appropriate compartment for the sorted goods; alternatively, the central control unit may automatically determine the appropriate compartment type based on multiple available options.

[0035] Step S402: Select at least two target bins according to the grid type.

[0036] In each of the target bins, the number of occupied slots and the number of empty slots are the same, and the number of target bins is an even number.

[0037] After determining the type of compartment to be sorted, the central control unit identifies an even number of target bins based on the compartment type and preset conditions, and then uses automated conveying equipment (such as a transport robot) to transport the target bins to the conveyor line. The preset conditions include ensuring that the number of compartments occupied and the number of compartments idle are equal.

[0038] The consistent number of occupied and idle slots means that each bin provides an exact match between the number of slots available for picking and the number available for storing. This ensures a closed-loop matching system where the number of slots picked out is directly matched with the number available for storing, eliminating the need to call upon other bin resources and reducing the complexity of cross-bin scheduling. For example, if a bin has 4 slots, with 2 occupied and 2 idle, it can function as a "picking bin" providing 2 picking slots or as a "storage bin" consuming 2 storage slots, resulting in a completely closed-loop resource utilization.

[0039] The number of target bins is even to achieve paired matching of "pick-out" and "store-in" in multi-bin combinations. An even number of target bins can form "pick-out" pairs. In each pair, one bin acts as the pick-out bin to provide the goods to be picked in the occupied slot, and the other acts as the store-in bin to provide the empty slot. By combining the fact that the number of empty slots and occupied slots in each target bin is consistent, at least two target bins can form a closed-loop matching when matching slots, avoiding the situation where a single bin cannot be paired for matching.

[0040] Step S403: Create a packing list based on at least two of the target bins.

[0041] The sorting list includes at least one sorting sub-order to be matched, and the sorting sub-order to be matched includes the mapping relationship between the picking slot of the picking bin and the storage slot of the storage bin; the picking bin is the target bin that has arrived at the picking position, and the storage bin is the target bin that has arrived at the storage position; the picking slot is the slot that is occupied, and the storage slot is the slot that is idle, and each slot has a unique identifier.

[0042] After receiving the sorting task instruction, the sorting order management module calculates the number of sorting sub-orders to be matched based on the grid type and the number of at least two target bins, and generates a blank sorting order.

[0043] In some embodiments, the quantity of the sub-orders to be matched is determined based on the compartment type and the number of boxes of the target bin.

[0044] Specifically, the formula for calculating the quantity Q of the sub-orders to be matched is as follows: Q = (M / 2) (N / 2), where M is the number of grids corresponding to the grid type, and N is the number of boxes in the target bin.

[0045] The blank inventory list includes Q sub-orders to be matched, and each sub-order includes a mapping relationship between the picking slots of the picking bins and the storage slots of the storage bins. For example, see Table 1 below, which shows the blank inventory list provided in this embodiment. Table 1 Blank Inventory Slip

[0046] As shown in Table 1, a blank inventory list includes Q inventory sub-orders. Before the grid matching stage, the grid mapping relationship of each inventory sub-order is empty.

[0047] Step S404: Obtain identification information of at least one of the picking slots and at least one of the storage slots based on the target bins that have arrived at the storage position and the picking position.

[0048] After the order is generated, the central control unit sends a control command to the conveyor system. Upon receiving the control command, the conveyor system uses transmission and positioning devices to accurately transport the target bins to the storage and picking positions. After the bins are detected to be in place, the conveyor system triggers an automatic barcode reader to read and collect the bin codes of the target bins that have arrived at the picking and storage positions, obtains the bin information, and uploads it to the central control unit. Based on the bin information, the central control unit can query the identification information of all occupied picking slots in the picking bins and the identification information of all idle storage slots in the storage bins.

[0049] Which target bins are used as pick-out bins and which are used as storage bins is completely random, determined by the order in which they arrive at the pick-out and storage positions.

[0050] Step S405: Complete the matching sub-order based on the identification information to obtain the sub-order.

[0051] In some embodiments, the step of improving the matching sub-order based on the identification information to obtain the sub-order includes: establishing a mapping relationship between at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot; filling the identification information of the picking slot and the storage slot with the mapping relationship into the same matching sub-order to obtain the sub-order.

[0052] After obtaining the grid identification information, the central control unit sends the grid identification information to the grid matching engine. The grid matching engine performs grid matching according to preset rules, establishing a mapping relationship between the picking grid and the storage grid. Then, the grid identifiers with the mapping relationship are filled into the sorting sub-order to be matched, thus obtaining the sorting sub-order.

[0053] As can be seen, in this embodiment, a mapping relationship between the picking and storing bins can be established based on the actual arrival of the picking and storing bins, without needing to preset the corresponding bin relationship when creating the sorting list. This perfectly adapts to the needs of random bin arrival and real-time changes in bin status in dynamic scenarios such as various conveyor lines, avoiding task waiting or failure due to discrepancies between preset and actual conditions. Furthermore, the mapping relationship is automatically established based on real-time identification information, reducing the decision-making time for manual matching. Combined with the dynamic adaptation mechanism, this further reduces waiting time and indirectly improves equipment utilization. Secondly, it supports simultaneous matching and parallel operation of multiple bins, breaking through the limitations of traditional "one-step sorting" single-bin processing and increasing the sorting volume per unit time.

[0054] In some embodiments, establishing a mapping relationship between at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot includes: obtaining first identification information of at least one picking slot, and obtaining second identification information of at least one storage slot; sorting the first identification information to obtain a first sequence, and sorting the second identification information to obtain a second sequence; and establishing a mapping relationship between slots corresponding to the identification information in the first sequence and the second sequence that are in the same order.

[0055] Each grid cell has a unique identifier, which must include sortable features, such as the grid cell number.

[0056] In this embodiment, the process of establishing the mapping relationship between the picking slot and the storage slot is as follows: obtain the first identification information of the picking slot and the second identification information of the storage slot; sort the first identification information and the second identification information to obtain the first sequence and the second sequence respectively; bind the picking slot corresponding to the Nth identifier in the first sequence with the storage slot corresponding to the Nth identifier in the second sequence to form a position-equivalent mapping relationship.

[0057] As can be seen, in this embodiment, the grid matching engine can automatically match the grids to ensure the accuracy of the correspondence between picking and storing. At the same time, the mapping rule of "corresponding according to the sorted order of picking grids and storing grids" simplifies the complexity of the mapping algorithm, improves the response speed of the matching process, and supports high-concurrency processing in multi-grid parallel sorting scenarios.

[0058] In some embodiments, the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using the same method, or the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using different methods, the sorting methods including ascending order and descending order.

[0059] Therefore, this embodiment does not limit the specific sorting method. The first sequence and the second sequence can be sorted in the same way, such as both in descending order or both in ascending order; or, the first sequence and the second sequence can be sorted in different ways, such as the first sequence in ascending order and the second sequence in descending order, or vice versa. In actual use, an appropriate sorting method can be adopted according to actual needs.

[0060] For example, taking a 4-compartment type, the picking compartment identifiers for the picking bin are: compartment 11, compartment 12, and the storage compartment identifiers for the storage bin are: compartment 21, compartment 22. The process of establishing a pair of picking-storage mapping relationships is as follows: Sort the selected grids in ascending order to obtain the first sequence: [grid 11, grid 12]; Sort the stored cells in ascending order to obtain the second sequence: [cell 21, cell 22]; The first position of the first sequence (grid 11) matches the first position of the second sequence (grid 21), and the second position of the first sequence (grid 21) matches the second position of the second sequence (grid 22).

[0061] In some embodiments, the method further includes: displaying an operation page, the operation page including the sorting sub-order and operation controls, the operation controls including a confirmation control; receiving a trigger operation on the confirmation control, updating the progress status of the current sorting sub-order to a completed status, and updating the progress status of the sorting order to a partially completed status; detecting that at least one of the sorting sub-orders has a completed status, and updating the progress status of the sorting order to a sorting completed status.

[0062] The operation page includes the sorting sub-order, so that the workstation can perform sorting operations according to the sorting sub-order. The sorting operation refers to transferring the goods in the picking slot to the storage slot according to the sorting sub-order.

[0063] After obtaining the sorting sub-orders according to the mapping rules, an operation page is displayed on the workstation interface, which includes the sorting sub-orders. Workstation operators then transfer the goods from the picking slots to the corresponding storage slots based on these sub-orders.

[0064] In some embodiments, the correspondence between the identification information of the pick-out slot and the storage slot is displayed on the operation page.

[0065] In some embodiments, the operation page displays the positional correspondence between the pick-out slot and the storage slot, and distinguishes different mapping relationships by color, and / or indicates different mapping relationships by static or dynamic identifiers.

[0066] The operation page also includes operation controls, including a confirmation control. Upon receiving a trigger operation on the confirmation control, the progress status of the current sorting sub-order is updated to the completed status.

[0067] Before all the progress status of the sorting sub-orders is updated to complete, the progress status of the sorting order is determined to be partially completed. Once the progress status of all sorting sub-orders has been updated to "completed", the progress status of the sorting order will be updated to "completed" and the current sorting task will end.

[0068] In some embodiments, the sorting sub-order also includes its sorting progress status, which includes unsorted, sorting in progress, and completed status; the sorting order also includes its sorting progress.

[0069] As can be seen, in this embodiment, following the logic of "individual marking of sub-orders + summary updating of sorting lists," the work progress of each set of matching grids is synchronized in real time (e.g., "a sub-order completed," "sorting list partially completed," "full order completed"). Operators and the system can intuitively grasp the task progress, avoiding the ambiguity caused by the traditional "uniform status of the entire order," and improving work transparency. The confirmation control trigger operation serves as the progress update operation, forming a closed loop of "operation execution -- human / equipment confirmation -- status update." This ensures that the system only records progress after the actual transfer of goods, avoiding "false completion" or "missed operations," reducing human error rates, preventing discrepancies between inventory records and actual stock due to the omission of a single sub-order, and reducing the cost of handling anomalies in subsequent inventory counts and outbound shipments.

[0070] In some embodiments, after obtaining identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot based on the target bins arriving at the storage location and the picking location, the method further includes: displaying the identification information of the picking slot and product information within the picking slot, the product information including at least one of product barcode, name, country of origin, quantity, and specifications; and displaying the identification information of the storage slot and the capacity of the storage slot.

[0071] In summary, compared with the prior art, this application has the following advantages: In terms of efficiency improvement, the efficiency of sorting is improved by supporting parallel sorting of multiple compartments, the utilization rate of equipment is improved by reducing waiting time through dynamic matching, and the integrity of sorting tasks is guaranteed by using an even number of boxes, effectively reducing the time for handling abnormalities. In terms of improving accuracy, the human error rate is reduced by grid-level operation guidance, the source and target correspondence is ensured by automatic matching rules, and the operation transparency is improved by real-time progress feedback. In terms of enhanced adaptability, it can perfectly adapt to the operation scenarios of large loop lines or U-shaped conveyor lines, support the mixed processing of even-numbered bins, and can dynamically adapt to the actual arrival order of bins. In terms of resource optimization, intelligent task splitting is used to make full use of the bin capacity, reduce ineffective waiting and empty running, thereby reducing the overall energy consumption of the system; In terms of improving user experience, it provides an intuitive grid-level operation interface, gives clear feedback on execution progress, and simplifies the exception handling process, comprehensively optimizing the overall efficiency of warehousing and sorting operations.

[0072] The above mainly describes the solutions of the embodiments of this application from the perspective of the method execution process. It is understood that, in order to achieve the above functions, the central control unit includes the corresponding hardware structures and / or software modules for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, in conjunction with the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in the embodiments provided herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0073] This application embodiment can divide the central control unit into functional units according to the above method example. For example, each function can be divided into different functional units, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software program module. It should be noted that the unit division in this application embodiment is illustrative and only represents a logical functional division, while other division methods may be used in actual implementation.

[0074] In the case of using integrated units, please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 A functional unit structural block diagram of a multi-compartment sorting device provided in this application embodiment is shown below. Figure 5 As shown, the multi-compartment sorting device 5 includes: Processing unit 501 is used to select the slot type of the bins to be sorted; select at least two target bins according to the slot type, wherein the number of occupied slots and the number of idle slots in each target bin are the same, and the number of bins in each target bin is even; create a sorting order based on the at least two target bins, the sorting order including at least one sorting sub-order to be matched, the sub-order to be matched including the mapping relationship between the picking slots of the picking bins and the storage slots of the storage bins; the picking bins are the target bins that have arrived at the picking position, and the storage bins are the target bins that have arrived at the storage position. The target bin is placed in the storage location; the picking slot is a slot in an occupied state, and the storage slot is a slot in an idle state, each slot having a unique identifier; based on the target bins arriving at the storage location and the picking location, at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot's identification information is obtained; based on the identification information, the matching sub-order is completed to obtain the sub-order, so that the workstation can perform a sorting operation based on the sub-order, the sorting operation referring to transferring the goods in the picking slot to the storage slot.

[0075] As can be seen, in this embodiment, firstly, the grid type of the bin to be sorted is selected, and at least two target bins are selected according to the grid type. The number of occupied grids and the number of idle grids in each target bin are the same, and the number of target bins is even. A sorting order is created based on at least two target bins. The sorting order includes at least one sorting sub-order to be matched. The sorting sub-order to be matched includes the mapping relationship between the picking grid of the picking bin and the storage grid of the storage bin. The picking bin is the target bin that has arrived at the picking position, and the storage bin is the target bin. The bin is the target bin arriving at the storage location; the picking slot is the slot in an occupied state, and the storage slot is the slot in an idle state. Each slot has a unique identifier. Based on the target bins arriving at the storage and picking locations, the identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot is obtained. Based on the identification information, the matching sub-orders are completed to obtain the sorting sub-orders, enabling the workstation to perform sorting operations according to the sorting sub-orders. The sorting operation refers to transferring goods from the picking slot to the storage slot according to the sorting sub-order. Therefore, this application dynamically matches the mapping relationship between the picking slot and the storage slot based on the actual arrival of the bins and the occupancy status of the slots, realizing intelligent splitting and dynamic allocation of sorting tasks, and improving the sorting efficiency and accuracy in various conveyor line scenarios.

[0076] In some embodiments, the quantity of the sub-orders to be matched is determined based on the compartment type and the number of boxes of the target bin.

[0077] In some embodiments, in order to improve the matching sub-order based on the identification information and obtain the sub-order, the processing unit 501 is further configured to: establish a mapping relationship between at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot; fill the identification information of the picking slot and the storage slot having the mapping relationship into the same matching sub-order to obtain the sub-order.

[0078] In some embodiments, in establishing a mapping relationship between at least one picking-out slot and at least one storing slot, the processing unit 501 is further configured to: acquire first identification information of at least one picking-out slot, and acquire second identification information of at least one storing slot; sort the first identification information to obtain a first sequence, and sort the second identification information to obtain a second sequence; and establish a mapping relationship between slots corresponding to the identification information in the first sequence and the second sequence that are in the same order.

[0079] In some embodiments, the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using the same method, or the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using different methods, the sorting methods including ascending order and descending order.

[0080] In some embodiments, the multi-compartment sorting device further includes a display unit. After obtaining a sorting sub-order, the display unit is configured to: display an operation page, the operation page including the sorting sub-order and operation controls, the operation controls including a confirmation control; upon receiving a trigger operation on the confirmation control, update the progress status of the current sorting sub-order to a completed status, and update the progress status of the sorting order to a partially completed status; upon detecting that at least one sorting sub-order has a completed progress status, update the progress status of the sorting order to a sorting completed status.

[0081] In some embodiments, after obtaining identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot based on the target bins arriving at the storage position and the picking position, the display unit is further configured to: display the identification information of the picking slot and the product information within the picking slot, the product information including at least one of product barcode, name, country of origin, quantity, and specifications; and display the identification information of the storage slot and the capacity of the storage slot.

[0082] This application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program / instructions thereon, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of any possible embodiment of the method.

[0083] It should be noted that, for the sake of simplicity, the foregoing method embodiments are all described as a series of actions. However, those skilled in the art should understand that this application is not limited to the described order of actions, as some steps may be performed in other orders or simultaneously according to this application. Furthermore, those skilled in the art should also understand that the embodiments described in the specification are preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily essential to this application.

[0084] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0085] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of the units described above is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units may be electrical or other forms.

[0086] The units described above as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0087] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0088] If the aforementioned integrated units are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage device (CMD). Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a memory and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned memory includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), portable hard drives, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0089] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps in the various methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a program instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage device, which may include: flash drive, ROM, random access RAM, disk or optical disk, etc.

[0090] The embodiments of this application have been described in detail above. Specific examples have been used to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this application. The description of the above embodiments is only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this application. At the same time, for those skilled in the art, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope based on the ideas of this application. Therefore, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

Claims

1. A multi-pocket tallying method, characterized by, The method includes: Select the compartment type for the goods to be sorted; Select at least two target bins according to the grid type, wherein the number of occupied grids and the number of free grids in each target bin are the same, and the number of bins in the target bins is even. A sorting list is created based on at least two target bins. The sorting list includes at least one sorting sub-order to be matched. The sorting sub-order to be matched includes a mapping relationship between the picking slot of the picking bin and the storage slot of the storage bin. The picking bin is the target bin that has arrived at the picking position, and the storage bin is the target bin that has arrived at the storage position. The picking slot is a slot that is occupied, and the storage slot is a slot that is idle. Each slot has a unique identifier. Based on the target bins that have arrived at the storage location and the picking location, obtain identification information for at least one picking compartment and at least one storage compartment; The matching sub-order is completed based on the identification information to obtain the sorting sub-order, so that the workstation can perform sorting operation based on the sorting sub-order. The sorting operation refers to transferring the goods in the picking slot to the storage slot according to the sorting sub-order.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The quantity of the sub-orders to be matched is determined based on the compartment type and the number of boxes in the target bin.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of improving the matching sub-order based on the identification information to obtain the sub-order includes: Establish a mapping relationship between at least one of the pick-out slots and at least one of the storage slots; The identification information of the picking slot and the storage slot with the mapping relationship is filled into the same sorting sub-order to be matched, and the sorting sub-order is obtained.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The establishment of a mapping relationship between at least one of the pick-up slots and at least one of the storage slots includes: Obtain first identification information of at least one of the picking slots, and obtain second identification information of at least one of the storing slots; The first identification information is sorted to obtain a first sequence, and the second identification information is sorted to obtain a second sequence; Establish a mapping relationship between the grids corresponding to the identification information that are in the same order in the first sequence and the second sequence.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using the same method, or the first sequence and the second sequence are sorted using different methods, including ascending order and descending order.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, After obtaining the sorting sub-order, the method further includes: The operation page is displayed, which includes the sorting sub-order and operation controls, including a confirmation control. Upon receiving a trigger operation on the confirmation control, the progress status of the current sorting sub-order is updated to the completed status, and the progress status of the sorting order is updated to the partially completed status. If at least one of the sorting sub-orders is detected to be in a completed state, the progress status of the sorting order is updated to the sorting completed state.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, After obtaining the identification information of at least one picking slot and at least one storing slot based on the target bins arriving at the storage position and the picking position, the method further includes: The system displays the identification information of the picking compartment and the product information within the picking compartment, wherein the product information includes at least one of the following: product barcode, name, country of origin, quantity, and specifications; and... The display shows the identification information of the storage compartment and the capacity of the storage compartment.

8. A multi-compartment sorting device, characterized in that, The multi-compartment sorting device includes: The processing unit is used to select the slot type of the bins to be sorted; select at least two target bins according to the slot type, wherein the number of occupied slots and the number of free slots in each target bin are the same, and the number of bins in each target bin is even; create a sorting order based on the at least two target bins, the sorting order including at least one sorting sub-order to be matched, the sub-order to be matched including the mapping relationship between the picking slots of the picking bins and the storage slots of the storage bins; the picking bins are the target bins that have arrived at the picking position, and the storage bins are the target bins that have arrived at the storage position. The target bin; the picking slot is a slot in an occupied state, and the storage slot is a slot in an idle state, each slot having a unique identifier; based on the target bins arriving at the storage and picking positions, at least one picking slot and at least one storage slot's identifier information is obtained; based on the identifier information, the matching sub-order is completed to obtain the sub-order, so that the workstation can perform a sorting operation based on the sub-order, the sorting operation referring to transferring the goods in the picking slot to the storage slot.

9. A sorting system, characterized in that, It includes a central control unit, which is used to execute the step instructions in the method as described in any one of claims 1-7.

10. A central control unit, characterized in that, It includes a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the step instructions of the method as described in any one of claims 1-7 when it invokes the computer program in the memory.

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